Gilbreath is the 258th former Northwoods League player to debut in MLB
Rochester, Minn. – Former St. Cloud Rox pitcher Lucas Gilbreath, made his Major League debut for the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, May 1, 2021. Gilbreath is the 258th former Northwoods League player to reach the Major League level.
Gilbreath, who played collegiately at the University of Minnesota, pitched for the St. Cloud Rox in 2015. He was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the 7th round of the 2017 MLB draft.
In 2015 with the Rox, Gilbreath appeared in 13 games and was 5-0 with a 2.21 ERA. He struck out 51 batters in 40.2 innings and saved one game.
Gilbreath began his professional career in 2017 with the Grand Junction Rockies of the Short Season A Pioneer League. He appeared in 12 games and was 2-3 with a 4.60 ERA. He struck out 32 batters in 43 innings pitched and had a 1.535 WHIP.
Gilbreath moved up for the 2018 season to the Asheville Tourists of the Lo-A South Atlantic League. He won seven games with Asheville and pitched 116 innings and struck out 119. He also saved two games and had a 1.353 WHIP.
In 2019 Gilbreath was promoted again to the Lancaster JetHawks of the Hi-A California League. With the JetHawks he was 5-10 with a 5.81 ERA in 28 games. He struck out 143 batters in 144 innings.
Gilbreath spent Spring Training in 2021 with the Rockies and pitched in ten games. He struck out 14 batters in 9.1 innings and was 1-1 with a 5.79 ERA. He was recalled from the Rockies Alternate Training site and made his Major League debut against the Diamondbacks. Gilbreath entered the game in relief of Justin Lawrence in the 9th inning and pitched one inning allowing one run on two hits.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Having completed its’ 27th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, over 250 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and MLB Gold Glove finalist and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TOR). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.